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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. bank — for money
  3. season — in sport
  4. face — to confront
  5. kid — to tease
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. kid — child
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. bank — of a river
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. prune — to trim
  14. dip — to sink
  15. wound — an injury
  16. season — of the year
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. foot — a measure
  19. face — to point toward
  20. face — part of the head
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. wound — an injury
  23. prune — to trim
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com